ORAS UU Gotta Go Fast (Peaked #9 on the PS! ladder)

[FlederMau5]

Alright, so this'll be my second RMT for 6th gen, because this team has served me pretty well, but I think there's still some changes that could be made as I try to push to the top of the ladder. (Included in this RMT are potential changes to make to the team that I've thought about and that I'd like some input on.)

So moving on to actually talking about the team, (sorta) short team building process explanation, go-

So! After a ~4 month hiatus, I acquired Omega Ruby and decided to get back in the competitive Pokemon scene. Coming back to UU (the best tier) I looked around to see broken af stuff running all around. Me being me, and liking bulkier sweepers, DD Zygarde seemed like a good choice, with the bulk to set up 2 dances pretty often, strong stabs, and awesome priority in a tier nearly devoid of it.

Obviously for DD sweepers to work (and also just about any sweeper really) you need stuff to soften up the opposing team. M-Scep and Entei seemed solid, boasting nice nukes, spammable STABs, priority, the ability to clean out weakened teams themselves, and decent synergy for wearing out each other's checks.

I knew I wanted to play balance, because I'm an unoriginal, s*** player who can only play one team type and didn't want to try something new despite having a fresh start. So I decided to round out a FWG core with Swampert, as well as to check physical mons and set up rocks.

Next, a special wall, using one of my personal favorites-Umbreon

Lastly, hazard control- I went with Forretress, being bulky he could spin often, and could slow volt switch for dat momentum.

Then, Zyggy got banned back to BL, where it really belongs, because, let's be real, that thing is nucking futs. So, in need of a sweeper again, a lot of ideas crossed my head. After using something (I literally forgot) for a short time, I ran into SD Celebi. After promptly getting my ass kicked by this thing, I realized it was just what I was looking for for a new sweeper. So, whatever I was using before was swapped for Celebi. (and, as a consequence, Sceptile was replaced, after much indecision, by specs Raikou)

The defensive core of the team also got a much needed re-work in the past days after way too many close-calls/losses from every fighting type in the tier. Ultimately it was as simple as using bulky Crobat, but, again, I'm a s*** player, so it took awhile for it to hit me.

So nerds, here's the team-

Eco Terrorist (Celebi) @ Leftovers
Ability: Natural Cure
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Swords Dance
- Seed Bomb
- Zen Headbutt
- Sucker Punch
This thing's cute looks belie a deadly trap. Celebi's absurd variety of sets and respectable bulk allows for easy and surprise set up on anything that makes the mistake of thinking it can wall it. Leftovers furthers this trap, helping to bluff a defensive or BP set, as well as mitigating damage taken during set up to allow you to boost more for MAXIMUM DISRESPECT and also to make revenge killing tougher. Speaking of making revenge killing tougher, even after boosting, not revealing Zen Headbutt or Sucker Punch can play mind games, making your opponent think Celebi is actually the BP set attempting a desparate sweep, then, WHAM, (literally a) Sucker Punch. Natural Cure is a cool ability on a sweeper, allowing you to set up, eat a status if you have to, hopefully still force something to get sacked, switch out, and set up again later. Lastly, Jolly is taken cuz ya gotta go fast.

Other options: Lucario- More power, better priority, paper defenses. However, I suck. A lot. Frail stuff like Luke is really hard for me to use, but maybe I should just get gud and use him anyways, that way Curselax doesn't just 6-0 this team. But like, actually, Celebi does have the nice advantage of existent bulk, so I can set up multiple times throughout a match and pick off stuff as I go, building up to Entei, Raikou, or Celebi cleaning house. Lucario (or another fighting type) can also help this team deal with Umbreon, who otherwise has to be worn down slowly

420 Blaze It (Entei) @ Choice Band
Ability: Pressure
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Sacred Fire
- Extreme Speed
- Flare Blitz
- Stone Edge
Gotta go fast? Entei's got that covered. His E-speed is among the best revenge killing tools in the tier, sniping most frail wallbreakers and sweepers. Comes at the cost of a Jolly nature, but, uh...worth cuz ya gotta go fast and Extreme Speed is really f-ing fast. Sacred Fire gives him his nickname, because the whole tier goes up in flames before that godly 50% burn chance. Walls are worn down by the dual threat of dat big damage and burn chance, plus, free burns=more pokes for Celebi to set up on. Closing thoughts- Flare Blitz for even moar damage, perfect accuracy, and another strong STAB when Sacred Fire starts to run out, and Stone Edge is some coverage at least, and is useful for KOing other Fire-Types.

Other Options: Medicham (or any other fighting type in the tier, tbh)- Yeah, betcha didn't know this was back in the tier. Honestly, I've never faced or used one, I started playing UU just as Medicham went OU, so I don't know if it was ever good. Looking at some damage calcs though, it could be. This is another way to solve my Curselax problem, as well as delivering much more power than Entei if I go CB. Downsides are, Medi has way weaker priority, bulk of sadness, and missing HJK is disasterous 10/10 times, whereas missing Sacred Fire is usually only mildly irritating and not game ruining. Still, taking a dump on just about every defensive mon in the tier is appealing, so maybe the Medic could be worth it.

TM87 (Raikou) @ Choice Specs
Ability: Pressure
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Thunderbolt
- Volt Switch
- Extrasensory
- Hidden Power Ice
Ignoring the obvious "gotta go fast" joke with his 115 base speed for a moment, I want to mention I am especially open to suggestions/advice on his moveset. I've heard HP Grass is better, and if that is the case, I'm curious as to why. I guess since it's such an easy lure for Swampy, but it also lures in Hydra, so is the preference simply based off team comp? Also, Extrasensory or Shadow ball? But reagrdless, Raikou brings a solid amount of power at a great speed tier. He can wall-break, but he can also easily clean out weakened teams; and on top of that is a pretty solid lead, able to grab some momentum and solid damage off of specs Volt Switch. Speaking of which, the damage his attacks do with specs and the threat of him being the sub-CM set force the opponent to make some tough decisions whenever he gets in. To top it off, he acts as a second answer to CroCune, who is pretty terrifying and sometimes I need a back-up for killing it if I have bad luck with burns on Celebi or let it die somehow

Other Options: Hydreigon- Yet another pokemon that can take a dump on just about every defensive mon in the tier, but this time with some reasonable bulk. Downsides are, it's slower than Raikou (unless I go scarf which I guess is an option, but I really need some power with only 3 offensive slots open). Also a solid answer to Krook and Chandy, who are still sorta relevant and having answers to them other than Umbry and Bat could open up some new defensive options.
Noivern- A bit unusual, but it hits harder with specs draco, goes faster, and has utility with Switcheroo. Unfortunately, dropping the Draco, while powerful, also sorta kills momentum, which is lame. And, Draco is only a bit stronger than Raikou's T-bolt, and comes at the cost of the chance to miss and the -2 drop. Running Hurricane gives another spammable STAB, but it's about as powerful as Specs T-bolt, but now with a 30% chance to miss. Switcheroo is what makes it unique, whether it's worth the cost though, is debatable.

The Kipper (Swampert) @ Leftovers
Ability: Torrent
EVs: 240 HP / 16 Atk / 252 Def
Relaxed Nature
- Scald
- Earthquake
- Stealth Rock
- Roar
Finally rounding out the FWG core, providing some solid utility to back up the offensive core, and bridging the defensive and offensive halves of the team, is Swampert. Rocks are basically necessary for teams looking to sweep so as to soften up every member of the other team upon entry. Roar is useful for getting maximum value out of rocks, as well as stopping slower set up sweepers such as Crocune or (more relevant to this team) Curselax, at least for a time. Scald is basically the best water move, because fishing for burns is never bad, they open up set up opportunities and wear down the opposing team faster. Earthquake is for when you want more damage, such as when you're staring a Lucario or Absol in the face and want it dead. Water/Ground typing is great defensive typing, and helps to make up for his lack of recovery. Having a Fire-type check is almost necessary because they're stupidly powerful, and Swampert has the bulk and reasonably strong STABs necessary to check other scary attackers. Swampert can also help stop CM-Sub Raikou with it's electric immunity and Earthquake, which is also cool.

Cheshire (Umbreon) @ Leftovers
Ability: Synchronize
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Foul Play
- Wish
- Protect
- Heal Bell
The crazy cat of Alice in Wonderland is out to drive all my opponents crazy too. Let us count the ways: Foul Play is an excellent tool for a wall to have, while not damaging the special threats Umbreon walls too greatly, it makes switching to a physical wall breaker just awful. Speaking of physical wall breakers, Umbreon has solid mixed bulk, meaning a Darmanitan or Entei switch-in might die in the process of trying to bring Umbreon down. (Unfortunately, Dark typing is really bad for walling a lot of typically physical types, but solid mixed bulk never hurts on a wall) Next, wish passing. It's useful enough for Umbreon to be able to heal itself (obviously, being a wall), but wish passing gives Swampert, Entei, and Celebi more chances to do their job and avoid being worn down. Speaking of avoiding being worn down, Heal Bell helps Umbreon sponge status (especially with Synchronize to pass it to whoever threw it at Umbreon too) and keep the team healthy. (Especially Swampert, since he hates any status) Finally, Umbreon, with his ability to tank all sorts of hits, can just sit there and slowly kill any team unable to break him, which is always amusing.

FakeMau5 (Crobat) @ Black Sludge
Ability: Infiltraitor
EVs: 248 HP / 60 Def / 200 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Brave Bird
- U-turn
- Roost
- Defog
Ah the glue that pulls the whole team together. Fits like a dream too. He understands that ya gotta go fast, and is nice 'n bulky. Also, Brave Bird always hits for more damage than I expect, so that's cool. But his real job is to remove hazards and eat up all the scary Fighting type moves heading for my team. The weakness to SR is pretty lame, but at the same time, fast defog and roost is sweet and makes sure hazards will be gone if I really need it. U-turn is cool too for momentum and just good ol' fashioned chip damage. He forms a nice volt-turn core with Raikou, with an immunity to ground-type moves and luring in the other team's hazard-supplier, and Raikou's speed and power scaring out things that could hurt Crobat so he can defog easier. Last, but not least, nickname choice: FakeMau5 is a joke on how it's a bat but not Noivern, the one and only true FlederMau5 to me. (besides myself)

Other Options (for entire defensive core): Vaporeon-Aromatisse-Forretress- This is one I tried out for a little while but became a bit disatisfied with. Still, it seems valid on paper at least. Vaporeon covers a bulky water with some decent mixed bulk, Aromatisse covers fighting-types and Hydra, and Forretress spins and sets up hazards. Could work, having Aromatisse leaves space open for BP on Vaporeon since Aroma can carry Aromatherapy. Forretress still provides a decent answer to offensive Fairies and Grass types (assuming no HP Fire).

Finally at the end, thanks for reading!

But also, proof-of-peak: (hopefully that works, I've been messing with this forever to try to find a hide option or shrink the picture to a reasonable size and haven't been able to because I'm terrible at computers)

 

[Deoxys Prime]

Hey, I saw your team as a candidate for RMT of the week and after seeing this post I just had to vote for it and give it a rate! Your has plenty of charisma and your nicknames made me laugh and that's all it took. I play mostly OU but I have a little experience in UU so hopefully I can give some help.

Most of my other posts on RMTs were just short blurbs about options and possible changes but I'd like to be a little bit more comprehensive here. I wasn't ultimately able to recommend any changes but I did try to point out some stuff that could be very challenging for your team to handle - and maybe you'll have a plan in mind to better adapt your team to those threats. Anyway, I'd like to start with an overview of your team through my perspective.

Celebi - This is pretty innovative and interesting. I would be caught totally off-guard by this. It's not quite fast enough to handle certain threats but with Sucker Punch and a boost or two it's a total menace. Sucker Punch really sets this apart from Nasty Plot Celebi. The mindgames, coverage, and damage are all more impressive than I expected.

Entei - Your names remind me of my names - for some reason I just can't keep the dank memes out of my team names and alt names. Entei is an excellent wallbreaker with reliable priority and differing coverage than Celebi. It's a great fit to the team and is an excellent choice for a FWG core.

Raikou - Your Hidden Power type certainly depends on your team composition. Luring Hydreigon is important for your team because it will wreak a lot of havoc if it isn't dealt with carefully. Your lack of Steel and Fairy type means that a free Draco Meteor will be incredibly difficult for any team member to take, though I suppose Umbreon can take it and heal the following turn. Swampert, on the other hand, is threatened by Celebi and Celebi can use it as setup bait and isn't particularly worried about a burn because of Natural Cure. I think Hidden Power Ice is the correct choice here. Do Choice Specs net any important KOs? I saw the point with CroCune but I'm just not 100% sold on Specs for your team.

Swampert - This nicely rounds out your FWG core. Phazing, hazards, burn threat, and solid STAB damage make it a fairly solid choice at taking hits that other members of your team can't. I don't have much else to say here because this is a fairly standard set but I'll give some more information a little further on because it definitely has value tanking common threats.

Umbreon - Cleric support is certainly useful for a team in general. Dark typing is also a relevant addition to your team because nothing else can resist Dark or Ghost which otherwise hits your team quite hard.

Crobat - Crobat is a top tier threat for a reason. Reasonable bulk, incredible speed, great typing, and a fantastic movepool make it unpredictable and able to fit on numerous teams. In this case your Defog support and momentum grabbing with U-turn compliment this team very well. Flying type STAB and the double Fighting resist are also useful but not as notable as the momentum and support it provides.


In this next section I am going to give a general opinion about how I think certain top tier threats (S, A+, and a few personal choices from the usage stats) affect your team. My format looks like this:

Pokemon Name (Threat Level [1-10]) - Description

I also included a few calcs but I got lazy halfway through since I couldn't come up with many alternative team members or moveslots for you anyway.

Team vs. Common Threats

Crobat (5/10) - Crobat is hard for many teams to deal with. Swampert has no problem soaking hits from it but should be wary of stallbreaking sets. Raikou doesn't fear taking a hit and can easily dish out enough damage to KO it. Celebi can also kill a low HP Crobat if your Sucker Punch hasn't been revealed yet. Rather middling threat versus your team. Not a big deal.

80 Atk Crobat Brave Bird vs. 4 HP / 0 Def Raikou: 81-96 (25.1 - 29.8%) -- guaranteed 4HKO (these calcs assume a bulky support set, but even a full attacker set/spread wouldn't do much damage.)
252 Atk Choice Band Crobat Brave Bird vs. 4 HP / 0 Def Raikou: 144-171 (44.7 - 53.1%) -- 28.9% chance to 2HKO (Here is a worst case damage scenario; how common is something like this though? Not a big problem.)
252 SpA Choice Specs Raikou Thunderbolt vs. 248 HP / 4 SpD Crobat: 486-572 (130.2 - 153.3%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252 Atk Celebi Sucker Punch vs. 248 HP / 0 Def Crobat: 88-104 (23.5 - 27.8%) -- possible 5HKO after Black Sludge recovery


Entei (3/10) - Entei is a common wallbreaker that you yourself employ. Swampert can soak hits no problem but doesn't like being burned. Umbreon threatens it with Foul Play but doesn't want to take a hit. Raikou and Crobat both outspeed it and can survive an Extreme Speed. However, it will do damage if it ever has a free turn to come in. I think the number of opportunities it gets versus your team is pretty low on the whole though.

252+ Atk Choice Band Entei Sacred Fire vs. 252 HP / 4 Def Umbreon: 226-267 (57.3 - 67.7%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
0- Atk Umbreon Foul Play vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Entei: 178-211 (47.9 - 56.8%) -- 89.5% chance to 2HKO
252+ Atk Choice Band Entei Sacred Fire vs. 240 HP / 252+ Def Swampert: 95-112 (23.6 - 27.9%) -- possible 5HKO after Leftovers recovery
16 Atk Swampert Earthquake vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Entei: 270-320 (72.7 - 86.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO


Jirachi (4/10) - Jirachi is annoying for almost all teams. The Scarf set isn't the only one that exists either. Umbreon is probably your safest switch because let's face it - Jirachi doesn't hit hard enough with any set to threaten Umbreon and Umbreon can also Synchronize if it gets paralyzed by a Body Slam. Swampert can tank physical sets fine. Celebi can surprise it with Sucker Punch if need be; however, bringing Celebi in versus Jirachi is going to raise some eyebrows and perhaps tip your hand to the opponent. You're well prepared for it.


Suicune (5/10) - Your team deals with almost all forms of Suicune reasonably well. Raikou and Celebi both outspeed it and do incredible damage to it. It doesn't deal very threatening damage either. As you said in your post it does pose the risk of burning Celebi and in my opinion it's better not to switch Raikou into unresisted hits if you can at all avoid it. This is another middling threat in my opinion.


Mega Aerodactyl (7/10) - I think this is one of the first challenging things for your team to deal with. It outspeeds everything you have and has reasonable enough bulk and longevity to not be threatened by Celebi's Sucker Punch. Swampert is a very safe switch-in and Umbreon can reasonably survive its hits as well.


Celebi (3/10) - Carrying Crobat alone is enough to severely weaken Celebi's presence versus your team if you use smart plays. Umbreon is a safe switch in for virtually every set and Crobat just needs to be careful about Psychic type STAB. The lack of Taunt might potentially be a bit messy versus most Celebi but I think this team handles it well enough.


Hydreigon (5/10) - Unresisted Draco Meteor hurts. It's easy to deal with as long as you have Umbreon or predict well and wear it down.

252 SpA Hydreigon Draco Meteor vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Umbreon: 124-147 (31.4 - 37.3%) -- guaranteed 4HKO after Leftovers recovery


Machamp (5/10) - Crobat and Swampert make Machamp easier to deal with. The huge fighting resist from Crobat make it easy to switch into predicted Fighting type STAB. It does quite a lot of damage to the rest of your team though. Celebi also resists Fighting and can threaten it with Zen Headbutt; however, Crobat is certainly the optimal choice.


Mienshao (4/10) - Mienshao is a little bit inconvenient for your team but isn't going to cause much damage as long as Swampert is healthy. Crobat and Raikou have no problem dispatching it either.


Mega Beedrill (6/10) - Essentially a more extreme version of Mienshao. Once again, as long as Swampert is healthy you should be safe. It is much harder to remove because of its huge speed tier. The weakness to Stealth Rock and miniscule Defense stat do make it easier for Swampert to deal with on its own though. That Speed stat is the only reason I rate this as a slightly above average threat.


Darmanitan (5/10) - I find that this might be harder to deal with than Entei if it gets a chance to come in. Swampert walls it fine but Umbreon doesn't want to take a Superpower. Not a huge threat but it seems more threatening than Entei for your team.


Infernape (8/10) - Infernape is so potentially diverse that it is always threatening. Mispredicting here can be lethal for your team. STAB Close Combat will smash Umbreon. Grass Knot pummels Swampert. Fire Blast and Flare Blitz roast Celebi. The only team members really protecting you here are Raikou and Entei but Infernape can carry Earthquake, even if it is rare. Common Leadnape sets aren't going to bother your team though. I would be very wary for offensive ones though. Thankfully your Swampert can usually barely survive a Grass Knot and OHKO it with Earthquake. I'm probably overvaluing Infernape because it's not very likely that it will have a perfect coverage set for your team.

44 SpA Life Orb Infernape Grass Knot (80 BP) vs. 240 HP / 0 SpD Swampert: 354-421 (88.2 - 104.9%) -- 25% chance to OHKO (Mixnape set)
16 Atk Swampert Earthquake vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Infernape: 314-372 (107.1 - 126.9%) -- guaranteed OHKO


Krookodile (6/10) - Knock Off does things. It always does things. Moxie also does things sometimes. Non-Scarf Krookodile isn't too bad for your team but I feel that Scarfed variants can pose a huge threat. Knock Off annoys Swampert and Umbreon and its dual STAB is unresisted by your team. Both Swampert and Umbreon can reasonably switch in but losing Leftovers is bad for the team's longevity.


Honchkrow (8/10) - This thing's monstrous damage, resistance to Foul Play, and Moxie make it look very threatening for your team. Thanks to its poor speed tier you can revenge it with a healthy Raikou though. Swampert is even afraid of tanking a hit from it. If it gets a boost it will have no problem punching holes in your team.

252+ Atk Life Orb Honchkrow Brave Bird vs. 240 HP / 252+ Def Swampert: 211-250 (52.6 - 62.3%) -- 98.8% chance to 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
252+ Atk Life Orb Honchkrow Brave Bird vs. 4 HP / 0 Def Raikou: 172-203 (53.4 - 63%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252+ Atk Life Orb Honchkrow Sucker Punch vs. 4 HP / 0 Def Raikou: 231-273 (71.7 - 84.7%) -- guaranteed 2HKO

Your team does very well against most of the common members of the tier. My highest rated threats for your team (Infernape, Honchkrow, and M-Aero) can all be reasonably dealt with but you may want some additional coverage or measures to prevent them from doing well against your team. I don't feel well versed enough with UU to recommend you any new team members to handle those threats for fear that I cripple your team versus other common things you face frequently. For example I was thinking about how to reliably handle Honchkrow and all that came to mind were these odd Rock and Steel types that really didn't serve your team's purpose well. Since these threats can be dealt with using smart plays with the tools you have it's not necessary to have a check or counter to literally every single Pokemon in the metagame and I don't feel comfortable messing with your team's synergy with my limited UU experience to recommend any truly solid changes to your team.

If nothing else I just wanted to stop in, say a few words about your team, and give you some encouragement. This is a fantastic, interesting, and very fun team. Good luck in your further play!